Chapter 10, The Fall

And there was a “next” time, actually, lot of next times. For the few weeks left of our summer vacation from school, David and I had a new “secret” signal to let each other know that we wanted to “play” with each other. One of us would say, “Gee, it’s hot!” We would look at each other with a smile and know what we both wanted. We got naked together whenever we could. Usually, we did it in my house. But, sometimes David’s imagination ruled the day. We did it in David’s “camp” behind our houses or in my Dad’s old Buick parked behind the barn. It was a like living a dream, it was a wonderful fantastic time. As I look back on it now I recognize that there were other feelings that I was developing for David. I didn't know exactly what they were or what they meant but I felt different toward him.




Eventually, August turned into September and it was nearly time for school to start back up. When we actually did start school something happened that caused my world t come crashing down around me.

I was going to be a freshman that year in high school. David was still in middle school. The day school started, it was like someone had flipped a switch in our lives. After being together nearly every day for years, and especially that summer, David just disappeared. It turned out that first day of school I ended up walking to school alone.  We had walked to school together for years. Although our schools were adjacent to each other, David and I didn’t get walk to school together that day or ever again. He just wasn’t around. I never got to see him or talk to him. Where the heck was he??



One day I saw his sister walking up ahead of me and I ran to catch up. As casually as I could I asked her about David and she said he had a new girl friend, which was something that confused me. He had never mentioned girls to me. And then she turned and yelled at me, "He's gone!" And it's your fault and you know why!" I just stood there cemented to the ground as she ran toward her front door.

"What? What was she talking about?"


I moped around the house wondering what had taken place. How could this happen? He was there with me on the Friday before Labor Day weekend and after the holiday he just evaporated? I finally did get a glimpse of him one time as he came home late one afternoon as he going into his house by the front door. I stayed glued in my tracks as I watched his house. He didn't stay long. And, he looked different. He was no more the rough and tumble boy running around in blue jeans and no shirt. He was a shadowy figure and moved like he didn’t want to be seen. He was different somehow. I was confused and heartsick. A few minutes later he came out with some bags and got into an unfamiliar car. He didn't come back.



Weeks later, I stood in the living room where we so recently had experienced the joy of our special friendship and yes, our sexual awakening. Just like the rest of my house it was full of secret memories. I looked out the front window at the empty yard that ran between our houses. There were no laughing boys on bikes. There was no yelling of jokes or playful insults. The whole neighborhood seemed deserted and darkly quiet. The special, “secret” signals between two innocent friends were no longer heard. David no longer raced out the back door with anticipation and excitement on his face. I missed his grin and his silly antics. I also missed the rush in my heart as his hands touched my body and mine his. And above all I missed just being with him. The heat of the summer had cooled and with it the warmth that had been in my heart, leaving in it’s stead a chilling cold emptiness.



I suddenly looked up to see the reflection of a boys face in the window glass. It was a boy that I didn’t recognize. The boy had a sad lonely face with tears streaming down his cheeks. With a shock I realized that it was me. I turned away from the window and crossed the room to the couch where David and I had first trusted each other with our innermost and deepest secrets and desires. I sat down and the sobs racked my body. I realized then that I loved him and he was gone. And I knew that my life would never be the same.

Chapter 9, The Hot Boys of Summer

Later on that day, David and I had lunch in our separate homes. Usually, my parents came home for lunch and David’s mother rode home with them as they all worked for the same firm. The whole time they were home I was itching for them to go back to work. I don’t know if they noticed anything different about me that day or not. I was worried that they would think something was going on with me. I tried to relax and be myself. But it was hard. I felt that something inside of me had changed and that it would be really obvious to those around me.




After lunch was over and as soon as they had pulled out of sight, I was out the door. David and I met outside but we weren’t alone. His brother and the kid, Jeff from across the street were with us. We were riding around the street on our bikes and playing as we would have on any other day of the summer. During the afternoon it got really hot. Hot humid weather in August is to be expected along the coast. We had stopped riding and were sitting on the “banking”. That’s what we called the bank of lawn that separated our two homes. My home sat on higher ground than his did. We were both hot and sweaty. Mike and Jeff had gone off to kill a dragon or something, leaving David and I alone for the first time in hours.



David leaned back on his hands and said, “God, it’s hot!”



I said, “You want to come in the house? It’s probably cooler in there.”



He agreed, asking what there was to drink. We got some drinks from the kitchen and went into the living room. It was considerably cooler at that end of the house. As we cooled off, quenching our thirst, we started talking about our experiences with “jerking off” again. We hadn’t mentioned it since our initial meeting that morning. I tensed up immediately. Was this why I had been so antsy that morning with my parents? I started getting nervous.



David asked me, “You want to do it now? Can we do it together? ”



This really took me by surprise. I thought for a second and hesitantly replied, “Ummm…Err…sure I guess so.”



“OK! Great!” David started stripping off his clothes like they were on fire.



I on the other hand I was a bit slower. By the time I had pulled my tee shirt off over my head, David was stark naked and jumping around the room, swinging his arms around his head. “C’mon Adon, woo-woo!”



I couldn’t believe how quickly he got undressed.  I had never in my life undressed with someone outside of my family. I must have been some shade of purple with embarrassment. But David was acting so foolish, I quickly lost my fear and started laughing too. Soon I was naked. As I looked over at his naked body, I felt a rush come into my own body. I never had felt anything like it before in my life! I could feel myself starting to get hard as I watched David naked body dance around performing  silly antics. David’s body was beautiful to me. It was slim and muscular, two toned as would be expected, tanned above the waist and silky smooth, milky white, below.





David said “Hey, hurry up Adon! And then, " Hey, yours is different than mine.”



He was pointing to my penis. He was right. My penis had more skin around the end than his. We found this to be interesting and started checking out each others bodies more closely. He leaned in closer to me and I felt his eyes looking me all over. I started to feel self conscious again. He noticed that I had been getting hard and smiled up at me. I noticed that he had one hand holding his penis and the other cradling his balls. He was hard too. He plopped down next to me on the couch. I was feeling so excited as I watched him start to stroke himself as he watched me. I felt like I was in heaven. I understood right away that I was enjoying doing this and that I enjoyed being watched by him as I did it. I also especially enjoyed watching him rub his nice tight penis. It was absolutely delightful.



David was getting kind of fidgety. I said, “Are you ok David?”



“Yeah, I’m great." And then hesitatingly he said, "Ah…mmm...can I, mmm...can I touch yours? Can I touch it?”



“Um...Ok.... if I can I touch yours.’



He reached over with his right hand and wrapped his fingers around my rock hard penis. “This is great. Wow, yours is bigger than mine. Cool!” he said. I could feel the warmth of his hand as he started to slide it up and down the length if my rigid penis.



I had reached over with my left hand and did my best to follow suit. It seemed I wasn't very coordinated with my left hand but tried to be careful so as not to hurt him. His penis was narrower than mine and had a slight upward curve to it. It was rigid like mine except it was like it was spring loaded, pressing up against his tanned tummy. I had to slide my hand in between his stomach and his rigidness and kind of push it down so I could stroke him. His penis didn’t have any extra skin and it was quite dry, making it a little awkward to rub my hand up and down. I loosened my grip so it would slide back and forth with less friction.



We looked at each other and grinned. I could see he was enjoying this as much as I was. Soon I could feel that special tingling feeling that I had felt the night before. I looked back down and noticed the tell tale slickness oozing out the end. David noticed it too and remarked, “Oh boy, I love this part. You know, when the slickery stuff comes out of the end.”



I loved it too, every second of it. And then I felt the pressure building and I started to feel like I was going to burst from the pressure of it. David felt it change in his hand and squeezed a little harder just as it erupted. White boy stuff spewed straight up and out. It landed on my legs and it kept coming as he pumped it. It started running down over his hand. I couldn’t take much more and said, “stop David!” but he wasn’t paying any attention because his “Willy” was following my example. I squeezed him and felt his pulse just as his boy juice pumped up through his shaft in pure delight. His penis exploded as a loud “Ahhh…Oh…” escaped from David’s lips. It’s delightful stuff blew up onto his naked tanned chest and ran down into his milky white groin, mixing with his soft, downy blond pubic hair.



We both sat there in a daze. I looked at him and he looked at me. We were both grinning so much I thought our faces would break. We spent a few minutes basking in the sweet glow of satisfaction as we went limp. Eventually I took my gooey hand away from “Willy”. I looked at the amazing goo and caught its scent. It smelled wonderful.



David let go of me and looked at me with a questioning look on his face. “What?” he asked as he had noticed that I had my hand up near my nose. “This stuff smells good”, I answered.



“I know. I wonder what it tastes like?”



Before I could answer he had his finger is his mouth. “Not bad, kinda salty though. Try it Adon”.



“Err, no thanks. Maybe next time”, I said grinning.

Chapter 8, David

One thing you have to know about David and his whole family for that matter. He had absolutely no inhibitions. As his playmate for the many years leading up to the summer this took place, I spent almost everyday with him. I had to watch him closely as he would do anything, some of which could have landed us both in hot water. If he saw something he liked in a store, he would just put it in his pocket or under his shirt. I wouldn’t know about it until we would be on our way home. Then he would pull it out and show it to me saying “Look at what I got.” I think I finally got him to understand after several such incidences how much trouble we could have been in if he had gotten caught.




Nudity and open discussions of bodily functions were common in David's family. His story about doing “it” in front of his sister didn’t surprise me at all. This is the boy that used to come running out of the house stark naked, run over to the swing set and slide down the slippery slide on his bare butt. Ouch! Meanwhile his mother was at the door yelling for him to get his "naked ass" back into the house. This is the boy that in the summertime would play under a blanket on the front lawn with his brother Mike, take off his shorts, jump out naked and run around the front yard yelling, “NEKID”.



If he had to pee he would just pull it out and pee anywhere, anytime, well, almost. And his sister would pretty much do the same thing. One time we were playing in my back yard and she had to go. She said, “I gotta pee.” I thought she meant she was going over to her house and use the bathroom. Nope. She just pulled down her shorts and went.



I remember how embarrassed I was one time when I went over to their house one Saturday morning. I rarely went in their house because it really wasn’t a friendly place. He and his sister were still in their abbreviated underwear from the previous night which apparently they had slept in. While I was talking to them in their living room they both just stripped naked and put on clean clothes. Those kids were the only exposure I had to naked bodies before the day that Paul showed David and I his new trick. I wish my parents had been more open about nudity and sex but I sure wouldn't have traded home situations.

Chapter 7, Caught Red Handed

The next morning I awoke with a start. Oh yeah, I couldn’t wait to see David. My parents always woke up early and were just getting ready to go to work and leave me home alone, as usual. Not that I minded. I’ve always liked being alone. You know, so I could do my own thing. And doing my own thing had taken on a whole new dimension.




Dad yelled up the stairs saying goodbye and for me to "behave" myself. I said I would and then I heard the car start up and leave. Ah, home alone! I jumped out of bed and hurriedly got dressed. I jumped down the stairs two at a time and hurried out to the kitchen. I looked out the kitchen window at David’s house and his family’s car was still in the driveway. “Shoot, they’re still home”, I said out loud. Might as well have breakfast, I thought. I got out the Cheerios and milk and started to eat while keeping a steady watch on their kitchen door.



Our houses were built by the same people using the same floor plan, so our houses were basically identical. It’s kind of cool in a way but a little weird. David’s sister was a year older than me. She used to like to spend time with me and would come over and play. One time she came over to the house and my Mom just sent her on up to my room. She knew exactly where to go, obviously. I wasn’t expecting her and I was still in bed dress only in my underwear. She came bursting into my room and jumped on my bed. Needless to say, I was thoroughly embarrassed and started yelling. I was so modest in those days. Anyway, I digress from the story.



Our kitchens were at the same end of our houses and I could sit at the table, look out the window and watch their back door. I choked on my food as I saw David’s parents come out the door and get into their black car. Seconds later they were gone. “Yes!” I gobbled down the rest of my breakfast and threw the dishes in the sink. Yeah, I know, but they didn’t break. And anyway, I would have to wash them before my parents got home from work. As I headed for the door, I saw David come flying out of his house and go out of sight as he headed around toward the front of the yard, hopefully coming over to meet me.



I ran out of the house and gave “our” special “shriek” to let him know I was outside and I heard his answering “shriek”. “Shriek” is the only way I can think of to describe what we did. Neither one of us could whistle. You know, the kind of whistle you do with two fingers between your lips. The kind you do when you want to get someone’s attention. So we came up with this kind of high pitched shriek that kind of sounded like one of those whistles. Stupid, right?



I ran around toward the front of my house and met David with a big grin on his face. “Well, did you do it?” we both asked at the same instant. We both answered, “yeah!”, again, at the same moment. We both started to talk at the same time. David said, “you go first”. So, I told him what I had done “In my room” after I had gone to bed. All the while David kept interrupting me with questions like “how big did it get? How long did it take? Did you shoot much?” You get the idea. So, after I got done telling him everything, I asked him what had happened with him and he proceeded to tell me the whole story. This is what happened in David's (and his sister's) bedroom the previous night. This the story according to David.


Our houses had three bedrooms. A master bedroom on the front and two smaller bedrooms in the back. The thing is, for some reason, David and his sister shared the same room. David had a little brother too but little Mike had his own room. I never did know why.



David told me he had done pretty much the same thing as me. He’d waited until he thought everyone was gone or occupied and headed up to his room. He scoped out the other rooms upstairs to be sure that everyone was downstairs or outside. He said he should have waited a while longer but he just couldn’t wait. So, he pushed the door to and went over to his bed, dropped his drawers, and proceeded to “try it out” as he put it. Well, it got hard like he hoped it would when suddenly his door burst open. He looked up and there stood his sister before he could move or do anything to hide his “willy” as he called it..


“What are you doing?” she asked with her eyes bugging out!



Nothing....... Go away!



His sister said, “No way, I’ve heard that boys did that with their “things”, “Can I watch?”



By this time “Willy” had shrunk up some because David was really embarrassed. He he strated to pull up his pants he said "forget it!" and told her to leave him alone.





She said “Aw come on, I won’t tell anyone, honest. We see each other naked all the time and I’ve seen your “little weewee” when it’s been sticking out before. We used to take baths together for crying out loud, what’s the big deal? C'mon! Please??”



David didn’t know what to else to do and said earnestly, “You better not tell anyone and don’t you dare laugh!”. She promised she wouldn’t. She turned around, pushed the door shut and came over and sat beside him on the bed. “Backoff, not so close!”, he said.



He told me that he really didn’t want to “do it” with her there but she had already caught him with a stiff “you know what” in his hand. And she was right, they had seen each other naked almost on a daily basis and she had seen him with a “woody” before. He decided to go ahead and do it anyway. His sister didn’t say another word as she watched him stroke his penis back to life but when it started to get longer and bigger, get shiny on the end and start oozing, she said, “doesn’t it hurt when your doing that?”. David told her to be quiet. A couple of minutes later, he felt his stomach tighten as his penis felt like it was going to explode. And suddenly, it did. He groaned as his penis jumped in his hand as it shot his “stuff” right over the top of his pants and land on his sneakers.



His sister said, “WOW!”, “Holy Shit!”



David sat there on his bed, looked over at the astonished look on his sister’s face, and weakly wiped the sweat off his face with his arm. He looked down at his dripping penis and said, “Wow is right and don’t you EVER dare tell anyone!”

Chapter 6, In My Room

Later the afternoon of Paul's visit, he hopped on his bike and headed for home. He waved goodbye and headed down the street. I turned to look at David and he was standing there looking rather dazed but excited. I probably looked the same way. It was almost time for our parents to come home from work and we decided to call it a day. But as we talked on the lawn between our houses, we both agreed that we wanted to try what Paul had shown us. During our talk I realized I couldn’t wait to try it and I could tell by the excited look on David’s face that he was thinking the same thing.




My parents came home and Dad started a fire in our outside fireplace. We roasted hotdogs and had fresh vegetables from the garden. During the meal someone asked me what I had done that day? “Oh, nothing much” I said, “just played with David and stuff.” After being gone all day, Mom and Dad caught up on some of the work around the house and then as usual they settled down to watch “ The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite”.



Ordinarily, after supper, I would have gone back out to play but I knew what David was planning. He most likely wouldn’t be back outside this night. He had said he was going to try what Paul had shown us as soon as he got the chance.


I didn’t know exactly what David had planned but I had figured out what I was going to do. I was just going to do what I usually did, go up to my room to read a book. Then I waited for my chance. I loved to read, but that night I was just too impatient and distracted to read. As soon as the house quieted down, I knew that my parents had finished their evening work and into the living room to watch the news and then “The Lawrence Welk Show”, “To Tell the Truth”, or whatever was on that night. I knew that I was probably safe to do what I wanted as long as I went down to say goodnight before I went to sleep. I would have at least an hour to myself. They knew I liked to read or work on my projects such as my model cars and planes.



I slowly closed my door and listened intently, I knew I couldn’t be too careful. I didn’t want to get caught doing what I was planning. Just being caught with no clothes on would have been embarrassing enough. I noticed my reflection in the mirror and saw my naked body. I had always felt awkward and skinny but I realized as I looked at my body, it looked almost as good as Paul’s had. I looked down at my private parts with new interest. My little penis wasn’t so little anymore. Somewhere along the way it had grown without my really noticing. It was surrounded with a light growth of soft hair that I remember worrying about when it first started to appear. I couldn't remember seeing another man or boy naked before Paul. And no one had ever told me about puberty and the changes it would bring. I lifted up my scrotum and looked at the testicles inside and realized that they were moving around all by themselves. How long had they been doing that? I recalled in the past, lying in bed with my hand inside my underwear, holding these in my hand and rolling them around with my fingers. It had always felt good, comfortable, but I didn’t realize until that moment that they were so special.



It was then that I remembered very clearly what Paul had done that afternoon in David’s little green tent. Just thinking about what his body looked like caused my penis to start to swell just like his had done. Now, this wasn’t the first time it had ever gotten stiff but it was the first time I knew what I could do with it. I started to rub it carefully and it grew even more, it got thicker and longer. I moved on to stroking it like Paul had done with the same results. I just couldn’t believe it. I had no idea my body could respond this way. It wasn’t just that it was swollen and that it looked different than it ever had before, it felt great! I could feel my pulse in it. My heart was racing and suddenly I felt hot. Soon the shiny pink end was oozing some slippery liquid.


Paul had told David and me to keep stroking even if it felt like we couldn’t stand it any longer. And I did. Soon I knew what he meant. The sensations got so strong, I thought I would explode. The skin of my penis felt tight as everything increased in size again, bigger than ever. I could hardly stand to keep going. At the point where I thought I would just have to stop, my legs got weak. I suddenly thrust my hips forward and then shot, what seemed to me, a ton of thick white creamy “stuff” through the air and onto my bedroom floor. As I gripped my penis in my hand, it kept jerking and shooting. My legs got weaker and I thought for sure someone would hear me making all the noise I was making when it finally subsided and stopped.



I sat down weakly on the edge of my bed grinning at myself in the mirror. And I remember saying to myself with a great sense of relief, “It worked!”, “I did it!",  and most importantly to me, "I'm normal!”

Chapter 5, Looking for Answers

As this story begins I was 13 but very much a late bloomer. I lived in a very sheltered home where nude bodies were never seen. When I saw Paul doing what he did my eyes lit up. How does anyone know that they like boys or that they like girls at such a young age? Sometimes you just do but sometimes you are not sure, confused. 


As I continue the story, you will see that later on I struggled with the feeling that I  was attracted to boys.  After all, it would prove to be against everything that I was to be taught at school, in sex education and eventually, by the LDS (Mormon) Church. Ironically, within just a few months, my family would come in contact with missionaries from the Mormon church and we would join the Church. Afer that, feelings of guilt would share space in my mind whenever I enjoyed myself with "inappropriate" thoughts or actions.


Sex was never talked about in my home, other than maybe something I overheard between adults like "so and so got knocked up". I was to have conflicted feelings about my physical attractions and my religious beliefs to battle with over the many years to come. It took me way too many years  to arrive at the place I am today concerning my sexuality.


Sexually speaking, my personal feeling is this. If supposedly straight boys enjoy sexual experiences and encounters with other boys, they are to some degree "gay" or "bisexual". Society in general has made being bisexual and gay so taboo that most guys disavow those feelings. If young people had someone to talk to, someone who was accepting of their feelings, whatever they were, maybe it wouldn't take a lifetime for some of us to accept who we are. Even some gay men aspouse that bisexual men are deluded individuals who can't admit to their "true" inner preference.

Many churches and organized religions believe that this "problem" is a matter of  an individual's personal choice and is a sin . I can't put into words how I struggled with my inner anguish about being unclean before God, my Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ and his church. I was totally confused and at odds with myself, becoming at times emotionally tortured, withdrawn and a loner. I decided at the very outset that this was one thing that I would have to keep to myself .....to keep it secret.

There were times when I seriously considered commiting suicide. But it takes a certain amount of courage to do that and I just wasn't up to it. If things had continued the way they were though I think I would have found a way.

Today, more than ever, the suicide rate for bisexuals, young and old, is staggering. The uncertainty, the lack of support from their families, churches and gay or straight friends, makes them feel alienated from both groups and hopeless. I hope that in telling my story and being here to talk to, I can help someone in turmoil.

Chapter 4, David, Paul and the Little Green Tent

My friend David was small for his age like me. And he also had short blond hair like I did. But beyond that, we were different as two boys could be. Remember, I told you I wasn't one of those rough and tumble kids? Well, David was. He was a tough little bugger. He had to be. Both his parents were alcoholics. They were living in an unhappy situation and they coped with their problems with booze. From inside our house, we could hear them yelling at each other and their kids most every day. I remember seeing bruises on his David's body. He used to tell me he got the "belt" when he got into trouble, and sometimes with the buckel end. In contrast, I only remember getting spanked with a switch twice. My abuse came in a different form but I'll get back to that later.


David was always on the move. He hardly ever wore a shirt (weather permitting), and bluejeans. He was tanned and lean.  David was energetic and outgoing, just the opposite of me. He was ambitious. David started a newspaper route when he was barely big enough to carry the delivery bag. He got up early each morning before daylight. He went and picked up the papers at the drop off point, folded them and delivered them on his route, all before school. He did this, summer and winter, rain or shine. When he found time to eat, wash up or change his clothes before school, I have no idea. He did it all on his own with no support from his family.

David and I were friends as far back as I can remember. We played trucks and cars in the dirt. We climbed trees, built camps in the woods, and following his lead we did some things we probably shouldn't have.

He bought a new red "banana bike" with his newspaper earnings and we traveled all over town on our bikes. We spent all our time together whenever we could. We did everything together.

One summer, we found ourselves pretty much on our own. Both our parents worked full time jobs and that summer we took care of ourselves. One day David's cousin Paul came to visit. I had never met him before nor would I ever see him again after that day. Although I thought Paul was kind of cute, he was also kind of weird and was a showoff. He liked to do weird things like turn his eyelids inside out and put his tongue up his nose. I was a little uncomfortable being around Paul but that day he changed my life forever.

David and his little brother had set up a little green tent in their yard earlier in the summer. That day a cousin of David's had ridden his bike over to visit for a few hours. His name was Paul.

Sometime later that day we found ourselves, David, Paul and myself, checking out the inside of this little green tent. At some point, Paul asked us if we had ever jerked off. David and I looked at each other and mouthed, "what?" David said, "What are you talking about Paul?"

Obviously to Paul we were uneducated. Paul said, "Watch this".

As we watched, Paul stood up, undid his belt and unzipped his fly. He slid down his pants and underwear to his ankles and got down on his knees, seemingly not the least bit concerned about his exposed body.

David and I looked at each other again...wide eyed!

Then David proceeded to show us how to masturbate.

Paul took his penis in his hand and started to slowly slide his hand back and forth along the shaft. It started to swell up. He continued and it got still bigger. It straightened out and got longer, got shiny on the end. As he stroked it slowly with his hand he looked over at us and smiled. His body started to thrust as he pumped it. Suddenly with a low groan, Paul arched his back and his penis shot some white thick stuff  across the small tent and onto David's jeans. David jumped back trying to get out of the way. Then they looked at each other grinning.

David said, "What the?...COOL!"

Paul said..."Yeah".

I didn't say anything. I didn't need to. I wasn't sure what to make of all this but I was definitely intrigued. They looked over at me. I smiled but I'm sure I looked like a deer in the headlights.

Chapter 3, Home Alone

As a boy, I grew up in a small coastal community in New England. It had a nice snug little harbor filled with lobster boats, sailboats and a few small yachts. Today, it is filled mostly with pleasure craft. The town was, for most of the year, mostly populated with working class people. During the summer months, we had an influx of what my Dad called “summer complaints”, people who “summered over”, and tourists. Once Labor Day passed, the town went back to its quiet soothing self.

My neighborhood was a nice friendly place. Some of my neighbors were first generation immigrants and used to call to their kids in Italian. These families were hard working folks: barbers, bus drivers, auto mechanics and insurance salesmen.

I remember our house looked like it was in need of some fresh paint as did most of the other homes nearby. My Dad bought our house soon after my brother was born. He worked multiple jobs to make ends meet with little left over for expensive house paint. This was soon after the end of World War II and the preceding depression. I guess you could say we were poor, although my Dad never spoke of it. As soon as I was old enough to attend school full time my mother went to work in an effort to improve our standard of living. Gradually things improved including the appearance of our house.

I spent most of my summers and free time with my brother and sister and playing with my neighborhood friends. As I grew older I found myself home alone during most of the summer when my sister found work raking blue berries and my brother had left home.

When I said I played with my neighborhood friends, what I should have said was "friend",  usually the boy next door…..my friend David

Chapter 2, Half Pint

I really don’t know what my parents thought of me when I was a little kid. I had some health issues early on. My mother had always said that I had “double pneumonia” when I was an infant, whatever that meant. I was the baby of the family, being the last of three children, with one brother and one sister. I was small for my age and extremely limber. My mother used to get annoyed with the family doctor because he would get sidetracked during my checkups. He enjoyed seeing how far my arms and legs could bend and rotate. He said I was double jointed.

I was extremely shy. My parents had a hard time taking me anywhere new. I hated crowded places. I was basically a home boy. I just enjoyed being at home. But it was more than that. Whenever my parents tried to take somewhere, a restaurant for instance, it turned into an ordeal for everyone concerned.

We had a couple of dogs and a cat. There were toys and books, trikes and bikes. I didn’t have any problem keeping myself occupied. That’s amazing when you think about it today. I had no computer games or dvds. We didn’t get a TV until I was eight or nine. What would today’s kids do?

Anyway, I didn’t realize until later in life, that I was different from most of the kids my age. I wasn’t one of those rough and tumble boys. For example, I used to hate going to my cousins house. My uncle was always trying to get my cousin and me to wrestle. Mainly to show my Dad what a tough kid his son was. I was having none of that. Thankfully, he eventually gave up doing that every time we visited.

I avoided any kind of group activities. My parents were concerned when I started school that it would freak me out. I didn't freak out. I did stay off to the side and watch a lot. But I basically got along fine. I enjoyed school. As I grew older I didn’t take part in sports such as Little League and basketball. I was way too small anyway. I just wasn’t interested and my parents were too busy making ends meet to take the time to encourage me to step out of my comfort zone.

When I was an adult I found out that I had inherited my Dad’s anxiety disorder. Keeping to myself when I was a kid was my way of coping with its unpleasant effects on me. As I grew, I also learned to develop close friendships with those people I was most comfortable with….like the boy next door.

Chapter 1, Breaking the Silence

I am new to the blogging world. I was encouraged to begin a blog by a young friend. He seemed to being getting a lot of benefit from his blogging experience. So, after following his and some other blogs for a while, I decided to give it a try. Sadly, the same day I started work on creating my blog, he deleted his. Hopefully he will return.

My biggest obstacle in starting this blog was where to begin. Explaining my situation is difficult. It took many years to admit to myself that I am gay/bisexual. I am an active Mormon, married to a wonderful woman and the father of several children. I  don’t like to categorize myself but feel I am bisexsual. I know most gay and straight men think someone who claims to be bisexual is just kidding themselves. But I feel that there are many people who are like me, who could enjoy the sexual experience with either sex. Although, generally, I am feel I am more attracted to males.

Obviously, being in this situation has been difficult. I have had to stay in the closet my whole life. A few years ago, I did get the courage to tell my wife that I had homosexual tendencies and that I felt that I was bisexual. It was the worst thing I could have done. Emotionally, it shook her to the core. She felt that our marriage of 30 years had been based on a lie. Due to her upbringing she has always had a problem with the homosexuals and she hasn’t changed any in her thinking since I told her. It has been really awkward for me whenever gay subject matter comes up. For instance television programming has taken a definite turn, injecting gay situations into their story lines. We both squirm whenever this happens. Also, her trust in me has been shaken so that I have lost some of my freedom to come and go without question. It took quite awhile for things to calm down and for life at home to be more normal. As I write this, we have never talked about it again. As far as I know, she has never told anyone. Anyway, I decided a long time ago that I had committed myself to living a heterosexual life. I have a wife and family that I love and can’t ever see living without. I have been a believing Mormon my whole adult life and feel that I want to continue to be. Of course, If anyone found out my true feelings, my whole life would be turned upside down…..So therefore, I remain ……. Forever Silent.